Wallsendmag

Never thought I could love a NUFC manager in the same way I did Kevin Keegan, and to a slightly lesser extent, Sir Bobby, but this fella is narve going to test that.

The entire Putney End will be NUFC fans tbh.

Target reached/passed!

Agreed I asked the same question myself a few months ago. It's frustrating, some of them are decent. Imagine the s*** that would be perpetuated should they be unchallenged. You tend to agree with them rather than challenge them tbf.

Remember seeing that on Top of the Pops 20 odd years ago!

Agree with this.

They've raised £1,000 so far.

Used to love watching this little magician at SJP. Now he gets his chance to strut his stuff at the top end of European football. God I hate Pardew.

The forgotten man. Had to go back 5 pages to find the thread about him. Would love to think Benitez can get him fit and we can get a good run of games out of him this coming season. Been very impressed with the way he links up our midfield and attacking play the few times I've actually seen him play for us and he's certainly a clever little player with a decent shot on him. Think he could do well next season if, big if I know, he can keep himself fit. Hopefully the new training facilities and having staff there who know what they're doing can help there.

Since they were asking about pre-game music, any chance of Carina Burana returning as the music for when the players were in the tunnel and local hero for when they came out of the tunnel? Blaydon races just doesn't feel the same. Should get Alan Robson and Barry in the box back as well.

That might have worked pre all seater stadiums when people would get there early to claim their spot but not nowadays. Maybe 5 minutes before kick off when the ground is 75% full they could cut the music and let the fans take over but any earlier than that is pointless.

Here's the link again for anyone wanting to donate a few quid; https://www.gofundme.com/gallowgateflags

Great news! Hopefully the fans in the Gallowgate (and elsewhere) will really get behind this and plenty people will donate to get it up and running. About time we had a bit of noise and colour inside SJP on a regular basis.

It's amazing how often I read this. Where else would he have made 70k a week? Who else wanted him in the summer of '09? No c***, that's who. Good riddance to bad rubbish. At his best he was very good but 2 good seasons out of 7 in the PL says it all. Dragged us down for long enough. Yep. He was a disaster in his first season and stayed after relegation due to nobody coming in for him because he looked so bad and also the ridiculous wages he was on. He was a disgrace as a captain and bottled last seasons relegation big style.

How did it go then? Too busy signing players to have a meeting about flags i guess. Hugely positive meeting with the club today by all accounts.

£60k a week freed from the wage budget as well. Good news for all concerned.

Ah well see ya Andros. You could have had a great career here, instead you'll fester and your career will go into decline under Pardew. Enjoy your impending relegation battle.

They've just offered Michy Batshuayi £110,000 a week.

Although I think he'd potentially be our best player and would take the Championship apart gone are the days I get worked up about players coming and going. It's all part of the game and I don't expect Townsend to show us any loyalty or think he owes us in any way to try and get us back up. Let's face it, players like Alan Shearer for example don't exist any more and if Palace wave £100k a week in his face we won't see him for dust. That's the way it is these days so there's no point worrying about whether he stays or goes. It's another reason we're so lucky to have Benitez here and I'm not just talking about his managerial ability. In truth he shouldn't really have stayed. He's so much better than managing in the 2nd tier of English football and had he walked away far more prestigious jobs would have been offered to him. But he's a very loyal, dedicated and principled man. We knew that anyway but now we've seen it first hand. If any current player doesn't want to play here, for him, then they don't get a 2nd thought from me once they're gone. Alan Pardews Crystal Palace is a massive step down from Rafael Benitez Newcastle United, regardless of league position but if that's where Townsend sees his future then that's his problem. We know only too well how Pardew handles flair players.

How did it go then?

Krul will be away no doubt. Distribution from GK is vital in the way Benitez likes to play and that's his main weakness.

What about Aarons ? Edit: And we have Sammy returning too. Big question marks over Aarons fitness and in all honesty I don't think Sammy is up to it.

Would be pretty happy with Gayle, Mitrovic, Perez and Armstrong as our forward players tbh.

Was hoping/assuming "the couple of best players" would be Sissoko and Wijnaldum. It would be a kick in the teeth if Townsend, who was training with Spurs juniors when we signed him, jumped ship at the first available opportunity to a relegation threatened club with a fu*kwit of a bloke managing them. He signed for us when we were in the relegation zone with little hope of getting out of it under clueless McClaren so I'd like to think that he is looking at the bigger picture and realises how much he could develop as a player under Benitez compared to Pardew. Of course Palace could comfortably afford to double his wages and if that's his main motivation then he'll be away.

Happy with this signing but I'll be gutted if it's part of an agreement where Townsend goes the other way.